Paragon of Sin

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A series of rampant, devastatingly concussive explosions rang throughout the Dark Void. Intense shockwaves swept across the Soul-Saint Domain, even the Shattered World Moon's orbit was forcefully pushed into retrograde. 

BOOM!!!

A final, ear-splitting, heart-shaking, and mind-stirring explosion erupted in the Soul-Saint Domain. The resulting consequence was waves of gorgeous light, both off-white in color, and it dazzled the eyes of all the ignorant denizens of nearby planets and lunar satellites. These humans, beasts, and plant life were unaware just how close they were to total annihilation. 

The beings causing such phenomena were deliberately avoiding harming them, actively dissipating any excess power that might leak that could cause the cessation of all life that they knew and cherished. 

All of the Soul-Saint Domain's fixed space shook with vigorous intensity, reminiscent of a Void-Quake. Cataclysmic! 

Two figures finally separated, bringing a conclusion to their epic brawl at close-quarters. Separated by a few thousand miles, the two observed their opponent with calm, steady, and mighty eyes. While one gaze carried compelling authority and the other contained a forceful dominance, neither lost out in terms of power.

The Soul Saint King's eyes grew increasingly narrow, fixating heavily on the War Commander's figure. They had exchanged a total of 1,300 blows, all at close-range, relying on their Mystic Power and Physiques, yet he was unable to eke out any advantage. 

It must be said, in a few exchanges, the Soul Saint King wholefully dominated the Guardian of the Elements, Han Yuhei, and held him like a hapless chick awaiting its fate, yet the War Commander was capable of resisting him for over a thousand moves. That said, the Soul Saint King had held off on using any arts or spells for fear of the inevitable casualties that would follow. If he took it a step further, the entire Domain could collapse.

'This strange being of that mortal is quite terrifying,' the Soul Saint King honestly thought. While he hadn't used much strength, he felt the exerted strength of the War Commander's blows, and it rivaled a 7th Runic Ascendant of top-notch grade, and its skill in close-range combat was prodigious. The War Commander's tactics made it very difficult to seek out any advantage to deliver a decisive blow while in these mindful restraints. 

Every defensive action, every offensive strike, even the counters were all extremely calculated and precise, unhesitating in execution and totally faultless, defusing all aggression or forcing an outright response that had to be met. Not a single one of its blows were non-lethal, and if connected, the Soul Saint King knew that he would at best stave away certain death, and always suffer severe injuries. 

With such tremendous pressure, the Soul Saint King could only watch the slow-moving Wei Wuyin escape beyond the borders of the Ninestar Starfield. If one were to call him frustrated, it would be an understatement of this entire year. When has a Demi-Mortal Lord or a Mortal had the privilege of escaping from his clutches? Or the clutches of any Earthly Saint?

Perhaps only Ma Zheng could achieve such titanic feats.

Irked by the War Commander's effective tactics and combat instincts, the Soul Saint King was forced to accept that this matter would have to be tabled for now. With his acute battle sense, the Soul Saint King realized that with his desire to avoid casualties, holding back his true strength, there wouldn't be an end to this in the foreseeable future.

"I'm truly curious how you exist. But, I'll shelf that mystery for another day. Take your army, leave the others behind, and go—I won't extend this courtesy again." The Soul Saint King offered an escape route, taking a step back. The action was surprising, but considering their location, the Earthly Saints all concluded that this was the best course of action for all parties.

If the Soul Saint King had the Mystic Ninestar Unity Array, then this would be swept perfectly without any delays. Unfortunately, the Soul Saint King hadn't used that power, so clearly the strange Earthly Saint that was the War Commander had performed an arcane art that severed that advantage at its core. 

"..." The War Commander's eyes through his helmet remained entirely unchanged, merely observing the Soul Saint King silently.

"He's strong!" Han Yuhei coughed out roughly as he leaned on Sun Li's shoulder. Her support allowed him to remain upright, and from his extremely pale expression and nine-colored bloody nose, one could tell he had suffered severe internal injuries. Despite saying those words, Han Yuhei was embittered; unable to contribute and defeated despite his best, he felt a splash of cold and wet reality on his face. 

As a 4th Runic Ascendant, a being that was regarded as 'elite' by the starfield, he had never experienced such a depressing series of events before. Firstly, he had lost to Wu Yu, someone he hated with a boiling passion, wanting nothing more than to crush him beneath his feet, despite having the full support of his sect and two other Earthly Saints.

Then, he saw Ma Zheng, from the brink of death, ascend to the Earthly Saint. While he wasn't exactly certain of his precise runic state, he knew it was beyond his. 

Afterwards, there was this War Commander and an army of 1,000 Ascended beings.

And now, the Soul Saint King, regarded as one of the top three Earthly Saints within the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, where those scholars debated whether he'll one day reach that level or was already at that level, had revealed himself as vastly superior! Moreover, he was defeated without the Soul Saint King using any armaments, arrays, arts, or spells, just a raw expression of Mystic Power sent him off.

He felt it when it impacted his flesh and bones—without arts or spells, the exertion of power exceeded Wu Yu's, even while in his 3rd Grand Transformation! 

A clear-cut indication that the Soul Saint King was a level beyond Wu Yu even in his strongest transformation! How disgustingly horrifying was this?! All those years Han Yuhei had referred to himself as an 'elite', showered in praise of being amongst the best, carrying himself with unyielding pride, yet it had all been crushed in less than a year. Only a year.

All things considered, it must be stated that Wu Yu was a recently ascended Earthly Saint who had barely consolidated his foundation over the last year. The majority of his life was spent in the Desolate Dragnet Region, a dilapidated region without a Mystic Radiance Belt, containing a scant, almost insignificant, amount of ambient mystic essence. The fact he could become an Ascended at all was a result of astounding talent, the King of Everlore, and obscene luck.

As for the Soul Saint King, he had lived, thrived, and fed on the ample resources, rare treasures, and environmentally superior Grand Cyclic Stellar Region for over ten thousand years, where he stood at the peak of the Ninestar Sainthall for thousands of years, enjoying all the high-level benefits that came along with such a prestigious position and status.

It was undeniably unfair to compare the two, yet Han Yuhei was unable to stop himself from doing so subconsciously.

Why?

Because the Soul Saint King, the Hallmaster of the Soul-Saint Domain's Sainthall, elected leader of the Ninestar Starfield, was also an 8th Runic Ascendant! 

Just like Wu Yu! 

"If Hallmaster Soul Saint wasn't concerned about us, the living citizens of his Domain, or the starfield's orbital condition, that strange existence of Wei Wuyin's wouldn't have lasted this long," Faye Liying, the former Soul Rising Saint, flatly stated her belief. She had surrendered unquestionably and without resistance for a reason! She fully knew that the Soul Saint King, even without the Mystic Ninestar Unity Array or reinforcements, was unmatched! 

Even if they all teamed up in a valiant show of robust defiance, siding with Wei Wuyin, they would all lose. It would be no different than that strange being fighting against the three masked Trueborn from before. And from the level of power shown thus far, it was clear to all who heard her that she wasn't wrong! The Soul Saint King deserved his reputation as one of the top three Earthly Saints of the ENTIRE Grand Cyclic Stellar Region!

Han Yuhei weakly clenched his pale fist, his expression becoming slightly unsightly knowing the implications of her words. A disheartening truth that was like a nail, driven further into his heart with every passing second. Wasn't he willing to risk it all, serve a mortal, all for the sake of exceeding his limits? To grasp true power like this? This further instilled into him the desire to seize every opportunity he could!

Sun Li heaved a soft sigh, feeling Han Yuhei tremble ever-so-slightly with self-realized, anger-igniting reality of his life. Unfortunately, it wasn't that Han Yuhei was weak, but that the Soul Saint King was too strong! 

[In-Chapter Note: All spectators present will refer to Zhan Zheng as 'it' due to him previously being referred to as a toy by the Soul Saint King. However, in terms of Soul Aura, he leans towards the masculine, and is therefore a 'he' despite not being a conventional existence that could reproduce in either direction of the gender spectrum. Based on perspective, this will be changing wildly. Apologies for any confusion.]

"That's strange…" Lady Clearwind squirmed in discomfort as she voiced with a tinge of peculiarity. After being sealed so thoroughly by the Soul Saint King, unlike the others, she had to speak verbally. The others couldn't hear her in the Dark Void due to its unique characteristics, so they had to pay attention to her lip movements to understand her. Fortunately, they were observing everywhere their limited spiritual sense allowed due to the Soul Saint King's mercy, and her actions caused some of their focus to shift to her.

"What's strange?" Huoyan Liulan asked. She had only done so because she too felt a strangeness as well, but she couldn't quite pinpoint it.

Those who hadn't paid Lady Clearwind any mind decided to focus on her after Huoyan Liulan decided to involve her.

She didn't keep them in suspense as her lips moved, outright pointing out: "The dragonhead Earthly Saint doesn't seem to be at a disadvantage, and while the Soul Saint King is fearful of causing harm to the Domain and its inhabitants, does it seem like it also is fearful? Also, I can't-"

"Can't tell how many Mystic Runes it possesses?" Huoyan Liulan interjected, interrupting Lady Clearwind. Lady Clearwind harrumphed in dissatisfaction, but her actions did little to garner any response. If Wu Yu had seen it, he might think it was a little cute, yet the others took to discussion immediately. They had even forgotten Lady Clearwind's first point.

"Mystic Runes? Wait…" Sun Li was hit with that realization as well, noticing that the dragonhead Earthly Saint was using mystic power that was abnormally strong, yet there were no Mystic Runes being summoned. However, they could tell the tremendous power contained in each blow, enough to injure or outright defeat them if connected. 

Baffled by the absence of Mystic Runes, they looked to each other to see if those beside them knew an answer to this conundrum.

Did the Soul Saint King not notice this?

"Maybe it's because of its unique existence. It could have Mystic Power but no Mystic Runes, lacking Awakened Mystic Intent, like certain non-living puppets. The Soul Saint King did call it a toy." Han Yuhei reasoned despite his weak state. 

"But…that doesn't make sense," Lady Clearwind instantly refuted. Unfortunately, she was unable to engage in their discussion after they began to communicate through the fast-exchange of spiritual sense. Fortunately, the others also thought it was a little outrageous! After all, they could all feel its Awakened Mystic Intent.

How peculiar!

"..."

Resuming the confrontation between War Commander Zhan Zheng and the Soul Saint King…

"Is this how you want to play it out? You don't have long; the other Soul Monarchs of my Sainthall will arrive soon. I won't repeat this offer again. I strongly recommend you take it." The Soul Saint King's expression grew increasingly dignified, his Mystic Aura seething with each syllable spoken. At the end, he was a raging storm of immense power, capable of bringing forth the end of entire worlds with a mere thought.

"..." Despite it all, Zhan Zheng remained abnormally calm, unbothered by the threat of reinforcements or the tremendous storm brewing before him. 

"Your choice." The Soul Saint King acknowledged the lack of response with a shake of his head, pity growing in those lime-green eyes of his. 

Having given out this offer solely due to Wei Wuyin's escape, not wanting to destroy his little toy and teach him a lesson. He was left with no choice. Unwilling to give up these trespassers, the decision was decided for them.